Politics
Entries related to things political.
Read the Bill
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Wed, 03/01/2006 - 18:23It isn’t often that you get to see a website you worked on end up on a major cable news program, but that is what has just happened for me.
Shortly before five, I got a phone call from Rafael DeGennaro, Founder & President of ReadtheBill.org, that CNN’s The Situation Room was doing a segment on Read the Bill.
I rushed upstairs to see the last few moments of the segment. Then, back downstairs to check traffic on the server. Traffic so far today is about ten times what it normally is, but isn’t enough to cause problems for the server.
It’s pretty exciting because, ReadtheBill.org is a really cool idea and I’m glad it is getting some publicity.
Why primaries matter
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Mon, 02/27/2006 - 23:48On the most basic level, the answer should be obvious. It is how people in the United States are given choices, are given the chance to express their opinions about who should represent them.
Yet, this evening over dinner, I was struck by another aspect of why primaries are so important. I am visiting with friends in Washington DC who I met through Gov. Dean’s 2004 Democratic Primary campaign. I have made friends through the primaries. I have learned through them.
I am in Washington for the New Organizing Institute training. This is a group of around forty people who have become excited about being involved in politics. I don’t know how many of them became involved because of the 2004 election but I know that there are people who were involved in the campaigns of Gov. Dean and General Clark.
Adoption
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Sun, 02/26/2006 - 18:04I’m tired. I was up late last night, and then Kim called this morning while I was still sleeping. Perhaps this makes me a little more sensitive than usual. So, as I worked on my notes for me session on tracking the local blogosphere for the New Organizing Institute, I stumbled across this blog and got horribly distracted.
Dawit is a young boy from Ethiopia that a couple here in Connecticut has just adopted. It is a wonderful blog. Please take a little time to read it. It is written by GaiaGal. (See earlier posts here.)
New Organizing Institute
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Sun, 02/26/2006 - 14:18Sunday afternoon. I am at a friend’s house in Washington DC. Yesterday, I did a training at the New Organizing Institute. This is “a unique grassroots training and research program created by experienced online organizers and technology professionals in politics in conjunction with MoveOn.org”.
Over 700 people applied to be part of their first training. They accepted 40 whom they split up into six teams. Each team will build a campaign for a fictitious candidate. I trained one team in setting up a campaign website using CivicSpace. For those who don’t know, one of my various ventures is to set up low end campaign websites through SmartCampaigns.
A Senator to Nowhere?
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Sat, 02/18/2006 - 15:06Recently there have been stories going around about party brass calling other party officials encouraging them to support well-funded incumbents because these incumbents will be able to give more money to coordinated campaigns with people further down the ticket.
I know that it takes money to run successful campaigns, but does this seem just wrong to you? It sure sounds a lot like the whole problem in Washington with folks like Abramoff and Delay. Money for votes, buying influence.
It is my hope that the rumors are false, or at least that party officials are standing up and telling the party brass that they are damaging the party. We need to support candidates based on their positions and how strongly they lead on these positions.
